Bye bye BlogHer

I recently learned that our brains consume 20% of our energy input, and I think that must explain why I'm so hungry right now, at BlogHer's end. Well, that and the fact that my resident pneumonia finally seems to have moved out and my body wants back the few pounds it recently lost. I'm happy to oblige. But seriously, my appetite must primarily result from my brain running at Mach 8 for three days straight at this excellent conference. I am inspired, exhausted, excited. I learned more in this short time than I have in a long while. I met some truly wonderful women who are now friends. I was in awe of the BlogHer founders and what they've achieved. Long story short, I feel really happy that I came, that I attended, that I sucked the marrow out of each day.

The keynote speakers were, in a word, impressive. Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman), Guy Kawasaki, Sheryl flipping Sandberg, Majora Carter, Brit Morin and on and on. Queen Latifah MC'd the Voices of the Year presentations last night for pete's sakes! And so many of the session leaders were thoughtful, funny, authentic and open; for the most part, there was a real generosity of spirit. I attended small groups focused on essay and memoir writing, larger discussions on media strategy and branding. We talked narrowing into niche versus casting a wide net, I got book recommendations, learned about self-publishing and what makes a pitch letter strong, and it was strongly suggested that I learn to love Google+ (damn).

I also managed to meet the two coolest cab drivers (one from Ghana, one from Nepal), wear heels all day every day, eat at two restaurants new to me (Frontera on Friday, Riccardo's Enoteca last night, see my good friends DD and D, sleep through each night and blowdry my hair once. This is all pretty outstandingly NOT my typical weekend.

T has been a master dad since I've been gone, so I give him a shout-out of love and appreciation. Not everyone is lucky to have such equality in their marriages or partnerships, and I'm thankful I do (though I wouldn't accept anything else, so really, it's good he can roll with that).

I'm off to enjoy a large glass of wine and a quiet night with my friends. Looking forward to getting back in the kitch. Eager to jump into what I think will be a great next phase of Em-i-lis.